The following is an excerpt from a White House Blog post by Brian Bond, the Deputy Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement. Prior to working for President Obama, Mr. Bond served as the Executive Director of the Democratic National Committee’s Gay and Lesbian Leadership Council. Later today, the White House will host [...]

In 2010, the U.S. Census Bureau will be counting and recording the number of same-sex marriages in the United States.This visibility is another way that LGBT civil rights are being recognized and respected. A large part of why this major step forward was possible is due to the hard work of the National Gay and [...]

Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin has made it her goal to pass legislation that would fund federal research into sexual orientation and gender identity. She ultimately plans to improve health care for the LGBT community. The bill is called HR 3001, the Ending Health Disparities for LGBT Americans Act (ELHDA), is sponsored by House Energy and Commerce [...]

Today, our own Executive Director, Jennifer Chrisler, wrote a guest post for Pam’s House Blend. We’re proud to be cross-posting her statements and Pam Spaulding’s comments here: This is a guest post by Jennifer Chrisler of the Family Equality Council; as executive director for the organization, she attended the Presidential limited federal benefits extension signing ceremony [...]

Yesterday afternoon, June 23rd, the North Carolina House passed House Bill 548, the School Violence Prevention Act by a margin of 58-57. The bill now awaits the signature of Governor Bev Perdue, who is expected to sign it. This victory is a historic event in North Carolina and the South. Yesterday, North Carolina stood against discrimination [...]

In 2007 Atlanta, Georgia resident Eric Mongerson was forbidden from introducing his children to his partner or spend time around any of his LGBT friends. After a strained divorce proceeding from his wife of nearly 20 years, the Fayette County Superior Court Judge Christopher Edwards awarded custody to Eric’s ex-wife, Sandy, and set the ban on [...]

On The Huffington Post, Senator Kristen Gillibrand (D-NY) declares her support for the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. The following is an excerpt from the full post. Last week, I had the honor of meeting a proud graduate of the US Military Academy at West Point, NY - Lt. Dan Choi. Lt. Choi came [...]

Note: Jennifer Chrisler is now on Twitter. Follow her updates on the signing ceremony and what happens next. As most of you now know, President Obama signed a Presidential Memorandum today extending certain domestic partner benefits to federal employees. Our community’s reaction is and should be mixed. While we recognize that any extension of benefits and [...]

On Monday, June 15th, the U.S. Conference of Mayors passed a resolution in support of ending discrimination against same-sex couples in marriage. “The mayors’ leadership reaffirms that the freedom to marry should not be partisan or political,” said Evan Wolfson, executive director of Freedom to Marry. “But rather is part of the security and respect all [...]

This post is an interview with one of our new interns. Welcome, Emily! Who are you? Hi everyone! My name is Emily Michelman and I am the new Volunteer Intern for Family Equality Council. I grew up in Annapolis, Maryland, but when I graduated from high school my parents headed down south to Durham, [...]

This post is an interview with one of our new interns. Welcome, Heather! Who are you? Quite the existential question. My name is Heather Noble, and I’m from the New Jersey suburbs of New York City. I’m an upcoming junior at Smith College in Northampton, MA where I’m studying both government and religion. I am incredibly interested [...]

Remember a few years back when any forward movement on relationship recognition for same-sex couples and families was front page news, at least in the LGBT community? Since Prop 8 passed last November, we’ve seen such incredible activity for equality in the 50 states, resulting in some states passing marriage laws this year while others [...]

This post is an interview with one of our new interns. Welcome, Bryan! Who are you? Hello! My name is Bryan, I’m a rising junior and an English major at Haverford College, and I grew up in a small town outside of Boston called Boxborough, MA. What brought you to Family Equality Council? What interests you about [...]

Progress has been made to pass the Healthy Families Act, an act which will provide seven paid sick days a year for workers to recover from their own illnesses or to care for sick family members. Sponsored by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), this bill includes LGBT families. On Thursday, June 11th, [...]

This post is an interview with one of our new interns. Welcome, Amanda! Who are you? My name’s Amanda Whelan. I was born in Maryland and when I was 10 my family moved to Wellesley, just outside of Boston. I go to school at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in upstate New York and I study [...]

This post is an interview with one of our new interns. Welcome, Ian! Who are you? My name is Ian Hedges, and I am a Program Intern this summer at Family Equality Council. I was born and raised in Charleston, West Virginia. I currently attend Beloit College in Beloit, Wisconsin, where I am studying International Relations with [...]

The Family Equality Council is proud to announce its Summer 2009 interns! Emily, Amanda, Ian, Heather and Brian will be with us through August, helping in particular with Family Week, our largest event undertaking of the year! To introduce you to these great advocates for family equality, I had them answer a couple of questions about who [...]

On June 13th, the Boston lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender  community will come together and celebrate New England’s largest Pride event. For over 39 years, Boston Pride has organized the Pride Festival, which now includes over one hundred vendors and merchants. This year, Family Equality Council will be a part of the festivities, bringing a [...]

How difficult is it to be openly gay and a politician? Many politicians believe fear it to be the kiss of death, campaign-wise. The reasons given are many (and some even carry a little weight – homophobic counter-campaign, anyone?) How much does being openly LGBT really hurt a campaign? How much do people really care about [...]